Sen Dennis Damon will be sponsoring a "mileage tax" bill soon.

Raising the gas tax makes sense. A mileage tax unfairly punishes those who drive more efficient cars. Of course the underlying problem is the excess of our cars-only transportation infrastructure. When a bridge collapses no one will be howling about not having artificially cheap gas to fill the Hummer.

I'm starting to think having nice roads in Maine is a pipe dream. New asphalt just doesn't seem to last that long. I don't think the small cars are tearing up the roads either. The roads can't handle the weight of the trucks. In The County there are several roads with deep ruts in the asphalt from vehicles too heavy for the roads. The water accumulates in these ruts during rain and makes for some interesting hydroplane driving.

One of the best ways to maintain the roadways and reduce repairs is by lowering the weight limit to 80,000 pounds. A vehicle weighing 100,000 lbs. causes as much damage to the road as 3000 cars going over the same area. While method of weight load distribution have improved they are not as benificial as a simple lowering of gross weight.

One of the best ways to maintain the roadways and reduce repairs is by lowering the weight limit to 80,000 pounds. A vehicle weighing 100,000 lbs. causes as much damage to the road as 3000 cars going over the same area. While method of weight load distribution have improved they are not as benificial as a simple lowering of gross weight.

The trouble with this silly liberal rag is that you always have a ONE-WAY outlook when it comes to taxing and spending: "...because neither party wants to be solely associated with the necessary tax increase..."

"NECESSARY TAX INCREASE"????

That's the best you can come up with???

What about the "NECESSARY CUTS TO WASTE IN THE STATE BUDGET"? Does that ever even enter your minds?

Check out WWW.MAINEOPENGOV.ORG and you'll find countless tens of millions in stupid spending. Cut HERE, and the roads will be fantastic!

I agree with the above, peg the fuel tax to loaded vehicle weight. You could drive a car on the roads for 100 years and not do the damage one 100,000 truck does in an hour.

THEN build a real road with a solid base, not the asphalt covered cow-paths we have now. There is a stretch of rout one between Machias and Whiting which was done correctly 25 years ago (During the Brennan administration) they put in a deep foundation of crushed rock, sand, and regular culverts, then they laid a thich coat of tar, 25 years and there are still no major pot-holes, and this piece runs over a swamp!

The other piece is in this day and age, why is the State Police Dept. still funded by gas tax revenue, Time to abandon the "old way" of spending gas tax (airports, trails, etc.) and put all our Gas tax money into the roads,

Our tax on fuel is now tied with Rhode Island for the second highest in New England 10 cents higher than New Hampshire and Vermont, and 07 cents higher than Massachusetts. Note that the per capita incomes in all those states is much higher than ours. Even Montana a large rural, northern State with fewer people than Maine, but more roads, has a gas tax lower than ours.

I understand. the poor economy has hit Maine government hard.

Exactly what do you suspect it has done to Maine citizens?

I have often wondered why a private contractor can do in two hours with two men and a backhoe what it takes the DOT five trucks, six employees and a backhoe all day to put a twelve foot culvert across a driveway? Maybe if they did something there would be plenty of money

This state doesn't have a revenue problem. It has a spending problem. This article is nothing but pure fear mongering propaganda. More money = bigger government = more money = bigger government, an endless cycle of lies perpetrated against the people to keep the status quo. We have plently of money both from taxes and bonds to put a gold coating on every bridge in the state, but the politicians continue to loot the people and spend the funds on failed social programs....instead of raising taxes it's time to abolish all social welfare programs and cut the allowance to the obviously incompetant kids running the show in augusta.

hankwilliams: Adding taxes artificially increases the price of gas. Gas is what it is because of demand it is not artificially cheap. Taxes are not a good idea. A good idea is to reduce the size of government and get rid of waste. Create a business friendly environment and they will come and put more money into the coffers without increasing the taxes. This state has some of the highest taxes in the country and we drive businesses out. We need to change the tax and spend tactic to a reduce and save tactic.

TAXES, TAXES AND MORE TAXES. So many taxes for road and bridge funding but nothing much seems to be getting done.I wonder all the time about all the bond packages that have been approved for roads, bridges, boat terminals and all the transportation issues included with these packages. Where's all the loot gone from them. No matter what we do we're always short of funds; always a deficeit. WHY ?

How about redirecting the money from all of the lazy bloodsuckers who would rather suck off the teet of the people who work for a living instead of getting off their fat duffs and going to work themseves?

On 5/29/09 at 6:32 AM, hankwilliams wrote: Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

"Raising the gas tax makes sense. A mileage tax unfairly punishes those who drive more efficient cars" Why should they get a break? Who do you think will pay for the roads after the new cafe standards kick in?

On 5/29/09 at 9:32 AM, HarryHSnyderIII wrote: Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

"I agree with the above, peg the fuel tax to loaded vehicle weight. You could drive a car on the roads for 100 years and not do the damage one 100,000 truck does in an hour." Then anne would be unfairly taxed.

I have no respect for DOT and when I read articles about them I wonder what universe they live in. Remember last week, the article about the Port of Eastport, local folks happy about it's use for shipping wind blades for turbines. Local pols eager to see more shipping out of this existing port. What was the DOT's response...........Eastport has no rail ties.........let's build a whole new port at Searsport instead, let's spend $100,000. to solicit bids for this. Never mind that the mid-coast region does NOT want anymore building in Penobscot Bay of this sort. They already have Sprague Energy at Mack Point and Mack Point is not fully built out. The current thinking at the DOT runs counter to any rational practical financial planning. I doubt these white men at the top ever balanced their own household checkbooks.